Location: Portugal

The challenge: a 40+-year-old beach house that had been closed for more than 10 years, in need of a bit of TLC on a budget.

The process:

• Tackle each room one at a time

• Lots of DIY

• Seek inspiration from the textures and colour scheme of summer

• Know that an old house will always be a work in progress

• Compromise on simple temporary solutions that fix immediate needs

• Living room done in the spring of 2024

• Kitchen done in the summer of 2025